*Ozempic and Wegovy are emerging as popular drugs for extreme weight loss, although they are primarily designed to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity in patients.
Those who use them to reduce weight are actually misusing them. It would be no big deal if this misuse didn’t have any side effects, but unfortunately, there are, according to medical experts.
People who use Ozempic and Wegovy to lose weight take advantage of the drugs’ ability to impact satiety; that is, the drugs keep you feeling full, even after a small meal.
Prescription medication is usually used to help diabetes patients and those with clinical obesity deal with their weight. However, many people with no diabetes or obesity issues turn to Ozempic and Wegovy to reduce weight, and it is the reason the drugs have been trending across social media and in Hollywood. Billionaire Elon Musk as well as Chelsea Handler have confessed they use them to lose weight.
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Experts continue to warn people that the drugs have adverse side effects and should be used with caution. “Journal of Pharmacology and Therapeutics” recently published a new study that found that users who stopped taking the medication experienced “rebound weight gain” within a year of stopping their injections.
“We’re seeing a lot of patients have this rebound weight gain, and it can really be devastating,” said Dr. Karla Robinson, a family physician based in Charlotte, North Carolina.
An avid user of Wegovy said she was able to lose a whopping 60 pounds after using the drug to lower her high blood pressure and high blood sugar. She was also overweight when she used the drugs. Wegovy helped her reduce her sugar cravings and gave her a boost of energy. But the story doesn’t end there.
When the user stopped using the drug, she gained back 20 pounds within months of quitting.
“I’m very frustrated about the weight coming back on in so little time. I crave sweets… I’m losing my energy,” said the user, identified as Yolanda Hamilton. “If I gain more weight, I will be on more medications.”
Other users claim their faces now sag and age after using Ozempic and similar drugs excessively. “Ozempic Face” is now a term used to describe the signs of aging observed in the users of the drug.
Jennifer Berger, a user of Mounjaro, a medication like Ozempic and Wegovy, told the “New York Times” that her face started to age aggressively after she began taking the drug. Mounjaro can also help people with type 2 diabetes regulate blood sugar.
“I remember looking in the mirror, and it was almost like I didn’t even recognize myself,” Jennifer said. She added that her body looked great, but her face looked exhausted and old.
Dr. Oren Tepper, a New York-based plastic surgeon, says that it’s common for sagging to occur during weight loss and this applies even to the facial area.
“When it comes to facial aging, fat is typically more friend than foe,” Dr. Oren Tepper told the New York Times. “Weight loss may turn back your biological age, but it tends to turn your facial clock forward.”
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